Homelessness is a circumstance that nearly everyone thinks could never happen to them—and yet, there are hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children with nowhere to call home. Please review the resources below to learn more about how you can help those in need.

What’s the best way to help the homeless? Former homeless people share their advice
 
Runaways and Drug Abuse: 15 Ways to Reach Out and Make a Difference
 
Homeless Shelter Directory
 
Declutter Your Home Through Philanthropy
 
13 Essential Items You Never Thought to Donate to Those in Need
 
The Ultimate Guide to Turning Your Home's Yard into a Community Garden
 
10 Incredible Ways To Help Homeless Animals Without Adopting Them

The Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities offers a new Crisis Text Line. Text 4hope to 741741 to communicate. The Crisis Tex Line is free, confidential and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

WHAT IS IT?
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is a 60-volume set of books beginning with the children's classic The Little Engine That Could.  Each month, a new, carefully selected book will be mailed in your child's name directly to your home.  Best of all, it's a FREE GIFT!  There is no cost or obligation to your family.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
Preschool children ages birth to 5 who are residents of Logan County.
WHAT ARE MY RESPONSIBILITIES?

1. Be a resident of Logan County.
2. Submit an official registration form.
3. Notify United Way of Logan County any time your address changes.  Books are mailed to the addresses listed on the official registration form.  If the child's address changes, you must contact United Way in order to continue receiving books.
4. Read with your child.

WHEN WILL I RECEIVE BOOKS?
Eight to ten weeks after your registration form has been received, books will begin arriving at your home and will continue until your child turns five or you move out of Logan County.
WHY IS UNITED WAY PROMOTING THIS PROGRAM?
Early childhood literacy in Logan County needs a boost.  An alarming percentage of 5-year olds who took the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment last fall were testing NOT READY to enter school.

• Bellefontaine - 55%
• Benjamin Logan - 52%
• Indian Lake - 33%
• Riverside - 46%

So United Way is working to bring the successful Dolly Parton Imagination Library to the children of Logan County.  We have formed a coalition of local educators, libraries, and community partners dedicated to early childhood literacy.  The Dolly Parton Imagination Library is proven on a national level to increase early reading, vocabulary skills, and parent-child interaction by providing free books to every child enrolled.  Each month, a new, carefully selected book is mailed in the child’s name directly to his or her home to generate excitement and promote ownership.  

All Logan County children under age five will be able to accumulate a free library of up to 60 books and develop the skills necessary to be ready for school.  This program mails a new, age-appropriate book every month to each child enrolled in the program until their fifth birthday.

Studies from other communities around the country show that children enrolled in the Imagination Library are better prepared for kindergarten, have a larger vocabulary, spend more time reading with parents and guardians, have more books, and visit the library more often than children not enrolled.

The United Way Board has committed $150,000 to the project over the next five years.  We hope to double that and enroll up to 1,200 Logan County children each year, beginning in January 2017. Cost of the program is $25 per year per child.   
The Dolly Parton Imagination Library has been in existence since 1995.  Founded by Dolly Parton herself for the children in her hometown of Sevier County, the program has spread across the country through the help of committed community partners.  The program inspires a love of reading by guaranteeing that all children enrolled will have quality books in the home.  At no cost to the family, an age-appropriate book is mailed monthly directly to the child from enrollment to their fifth birthday.  

All children under the age of five residing in Logan County will be eligible for the program, with a goal of registering up to 1,200 children.  Registration forms will be made available this fall at all Logan County public libraries, through the Birth Center at Mary Rutan Hospital, local pediatrician offices, day care centers, preschools, churches, elementary schools and through social media.  

Wish to help us or like more information?  Call us at (937) 592-2886, print this Dolly Parton Imagination Library Pledge Form, click here to give now, or visit www.imaginationlibrary.com.

Recovery refers to the process in which people are able to live, work, learn, and participate fully in their communities.  For some individuals, recovery is the ability to live a fulfilling and productive life.  For others, recovery implies the reduction or complete remission of symptoms.

The following are SAMSHA’s Eight Dimensions of Wellness — mental, emotional, physical, occupational, intellectual, and spiritual.  Overall wellness can affect an individual’s overall quality of life, and ultimately their ability to stay in recovery.  As you look at these eight dimensions of wellness, you will notice at least three of them; Financial, Occupational, and Social, are directly and positively impacted when a person is employed, and a fourth, Emotional, can be directly and positively impacted through a person’s job in regards to relationship building.

Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA).